Now there were no steel-toed boots or safety-pins in armbands in Game 2 (the latter of which Metta World Peace really should have thought of), but you get the point.
The score at the half was 43-43, but it really felt like Miami was in charge at the buzzer. James and Wade combined for 2 points in the extremely paint-heavy first quarter, but they both contributed to an early second quarter run that erased a 30-19 Spurs lead. The Heat only seemed to gain momentum as the period continued, thriving on transition offense and creating a few turnovers (not nearly as many as they did in the last game, but we'll get to that). In response, San Antonio looked increasingly like they were playing with a wild defensive philosophy à la OKC, which is so not who they are and so not what they needed to do to stop the Heat.
On the other end, the Heat D was no longer the takeaway machine from Game 1, but excelled at forcing unusually poor shot selection from Pop's crew. The Spurs only turned the ball over 11 times during the game, but ended up shooting only 44% from the field, a far cry from Game 1's 59%. Mercifully, the half ended to give San Antonio a break from the mounting pressure at keep the game knotted at 43.
The second half was a completely different story. Action in the paint was getting called far more often. Neither team made it to the bonus in the first half; both teams were in the bonus with plenty of time left in both the third and fourth quarters. As a result, both teams tried to win like this:
(As a side note, check out these guys' channel, Dude Perfect. This is basically all they do. Their latest one had some awesome bowling trick shots, and they even did one with Johnny Football a while ago. They're nuts.)
Back to business. Neither team was really able to move inside, which is how all three of Duncan, Diaw, and Splitter were basically neutralized in the second half. The Heat, on the other hand, were, as they have been all year, very comfortable playing this way. The Spurs taking much better care of the ball (no turnovers in the entire 3rd quarter, and The excellent play of Parker, Ginobili, and even Patty Mills from time to time kept the Spurs in the game, which contributed to the very entertaining second half in which neither team led by more than five.
The difference was basketball's best difference maker: LeBron James, who showed again last night that he is very good at playing basketball. James appeared unstoppable in the entire second half. He gave Miami its first lead since the break with eight consecutive points in 51 seconds, during a stretch in which he scored 12 of Miami's 13 points (the other was an Andersen free throw). Kawhi Leonard, like in the first game, found himself in foul trouble, getting his 4th with 4 minutes left in the third (he would foul out with 47.7 seconds left in the game), leaving James to the likes of Parker and Danny Green on defense.
That said, even when Leonard was in, James was incredible. His performance (35 points on 14-of-22 with 10 rebounds and three assists) is simply another chapter in his playoff bounce-back game brilliance, in which he's averaged 29.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, and six assists. Sometimes, even the best coaches realize they can only sit back and hope to "see LeBron play poorly."(I love Pop.)
With James doing work offensively, the defense helped close out the game late. The Heat's strength and discipline on D last night is summed up well in the last possession of the game:
The Spurs are an offense that always likes to make the extra pass, but you simply can't do that with 9.8 seconds left. Like they have all year, the Heat forced them to make the passes they didn't want to make by just being everywhere at once.
Last night, the Spurs couldn't overcome the Heat D down the stretch the way they did in Game 1, and their efforts to do so were mitigated by James' comeback from the Not-the-Cramp-Game. Folks, we got a damn good series on our hands.
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